Prince Andrew adds royal glitz as B.C. opens trade and investment office in London

PETER O'NEIL, Vancouver Sun02.28.2013

Prince Andrew and B.C. Lieutenant-Governor Judith Guichon in conversation at the B.C. trade and investment office in LondonCourtesy of B.C. Government
/ Vancouver Sun

Prince Andrew speaks at the opening of the B.C. Trade and Investment representative in London in the presence of Canadian High Commissioner Gordon Campbell, B.C. Lieutenant-Governor Judith Guichon (not pictured), and Susan Haird, B.C. Trade and Investment representative.Courtesy of B.C. Government
/ Vancouver Sun

Canadian High Commissioner Gordon Campbell and B.C. Lieutenant-Governor Judith Guichon with Susan Haird, B.C. Trade and Investment representative at the B.C. Trade and Investment office in LondonCourtesy of B.C. Government
/ Vancouver Sun

B.C. Lieutenant-Governor Judith Guichon speaks at the opening of the B.C. Trade and Investment office in the presence of Prince Andrew, Canadian High Commissioner Gordon Campbell and Susan Haird, B.C. Trade and Investment representative.Courtesy of B.C. Government
/ Vancouver Sun

B.C. Lieutenant-Governor Judith Guichon speaks at the opening of the B.C. Trade and Investment office in the presence of Prince Andrew, Canadian High Commissioner Gordon Campbell and Susan Haird, B.C. Trade and Investment representative (not in photo).Courtesy of B.C. Government
/ Vancouver Sun

Prince Andrew speaks with B.C. Lieutenant-Governor Judith Guichon at the opening of the B.C. Trade and Investment office in London.Courtesy of B.C. Government
/ Vancouver Sun

B.C. Lieutenant-Governor Judith Guichon speaks at the B.C. Trade and Investment office in LondonCourtesy of B.C. Government
/ Vancouver Sun

Former Premier Gordon Campbell, now Canada's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, will be on hand to mark the establishment of the B.C. government's new trade and investment officeGlenn Baglo
/ PNG Files

Prince Andrew speaks with B.C. Lieutenant-Governor Judith Guichon at the opening of the B.C. Trade and Investment office in London.Courtesy of B.C. Government
/ Vancouver Sun

LONDON — Prince Andrew's appearance at a reception Wednesday marking the opening of B.C.'s trade and investment office in a pricey patch of real estate overlooking Hyde Park gave the event a shot of royal glitz.

The new office is the latest step in the rapid expansion of B.C.'s overseas trade and investment offices, with the budget for offices in Asia, the U.S. and Europe soaring to almost $12 million in 2013-14 from $4.7 million in 2011-12. Staff has doubled to almost 60 people in the 13 offices in the three regions.

"I am extremely pleased to support the trade effort that goes on between the U.K. and Canada and particularly B.C. — and particularly that the West Coast intends to develop its relationship with the U.K.," said the prince, who is the Queen's second son.

But royal receptions aside, is it a wise idea for B.C. to be making a major investment on a troubled continent?

The European Union is struggling with debt woes and only last week Britain had its triple A credit rating cut by the Moody's bond-rating agency.

Susan Haird, a former senior British government trade executive headhunted by Victoria to head the new office, doesn't buy the naysayer argument.

"It's very fashionable to think of Asia as the great market for B.C.," said Haird, most recently the deputy chief executive of United Kingdom Trade and Investment, an arm of the British government that has 2,300 employees in 96 markets around the world.

"But actually - and it was the same at UKTI — if you look at what the major markets are for developed countries, they tend to be other developed countries.

"And if you look at the kind of investment from Europe to B.C., it's high quality, it's tech-bringing."

Lieutenant-Governor Judith Guichon was also at the party at the Canadian High Commission marking the opening of the new office.

But veterans of the international trade world are divided over whether provincial governments benefit from establishing their own mark in a major capital where Canadian firms are well-represented - some argue over-represented - by federal trade bureaucrats.

"Over the last 50 years I have never known an investment in trade and investment promotion in the U.K. to pay off, (though) Germany is, of course, another matter," said former Canadian trade negotiator Gordon Ritchie.

A provincial government office "gets completely swallowed by the city," he said, noting Canadian High Commission has a 24-person staff dedicated to helping Canadian businesses.

"Canada is already heavily over-represented in London for historic and political reasons. The incremental bang is simply not there."

Paul Heinbecker, a former Canadian ambassador to Germany, also questions whether B.C. needs its own trade offices, particularly since Canada's top diplomat in Britain is former B.C. premier Gordon Campbell.

"B.C.'s need for overseas offices, especially an office in London where the federal representative is the former premier of B.C., strikes me as doubtful at best, unless it has given up on Ottawa."

But Len Edwards, a former top diplomat and ex-deputy minister at both foreign affairs and international trade, said the investment could pay dividends - as long as the province continues to put most of its focus on Asia.

"Europe is a major investor in Canada, including in resources, and London is Europe's largest financial centre," Edwards, the former ambassador to Japan and South Korea, said in an email.

Haird's connections have already paid off in terms of giving the grand opening a little shot of royal sizzle.

Her former job led to her connection with the Duke of York, a controversial royal who has at various times been nicknamed "Randy Andy" and, during his high-cost post as British trade envoy, "Air-Miles Andy."

When Haird left her post at UKTI last year "he kindly invited me for what is called 'an audience,' at the palace," she said in an interview here last week.

"I said to him, 'would you be willing to do things with British Columbia?' and he said, 'I'd be delighted.' He loves Canada, he was at school in Ontario."

Prince Andrew had a tumultuous 10-year reign as Britain's "special representative for international trade and investment."

He was criticized for his friendship with figures such as convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's son Saif, and the son-in-law of the president of corruption-plagued Kazakhstan, who bought the duke's house for well over the asking price in 2007.

In 2010 a leaked U.S. cable cited a U.S. diplomat reporting that Andrew spoke "cockily . . . verging on the rude" at an official function with British and Canadian business people.

Haird, asked if Prince Andrew will be involved in any B.C. trade and investment promotion after Wednesday's event, replied: "I am not aware of any specific plans."

The new office replaces a shoestring operation over the past seven years led by two men who worked out of their homes in the United Kingdom and Germany.

In their place, Haird has two full-time staff in the London office, in addition to a tourism staff, and calls on eight sector specialists who work part-time for B.C. Two are in France, one in Germany and the rest in the United Kingdom.

They focus on key sectors of the B.C. economy, including natural resources, aerospace, professional services, and information/communication technology firms.

In Europe, Haird and her staff meet with entrepreneurs interested in doing business in B.C., and twice a year she'll tour B.C. with her Asia- and U.S.-based counterparts to help companies seeking European customers.

Of the more than $31 billion in products exported from the province in 2012, by far the largest portion went to the U.S. ($14.2 billion), China ($6 billion), Japan ($4.2 billion) and South Korea ($1.9 billion).

Europe as a whole took in less than $2 billion, or about six per cent of the total and well below the 7.5-per-cent share a year earlier.

The United Kingdom and Germany were the destinations of $576 million in B.C. goods last year, or less than a third of the European total. Neither Statistics Canada nor the B.C. government could provide figures on European investment in B.C.

Still, Canada's pending trade and investment deal with the European Union will add to Europe's importance, according to Edwards, though he said primary focus on Asia is a "no brainer" for B.C.

Asia's growth projections "dwarf those of Europe. If you have to choose one or the other, Asia is the answer," he told The Sun.

"If you can afford to be present in one or two places other than Asia (and not cut your Asian team), London is not a bad addition. And you can also find business opportunities in Asia through London's network."

Prince Andrew adds royal glitz as B.C. opens trade and investment office in London

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